Sustainability at adnams

Its second nature

Tall grass against a colorful sky at sunset.
Modern building with a green roof surrounded by wildflowers and blue sky.

Our only impact

Is on your taste buds

Modern building with a green roof surrounded by wildflowers and blue sky.

Inspired to innovate

Adnams is a proud ethical business. We are committed to a sustainable future; one in which progress is balanced with care, thought and consideration for our environment and our communities, so we continue to innovate and search out new and better ways of working.

 

Our coastal home is integral to our business and continues to inspire us. We have a clear set of values which influence the way we work, helps us build strong relationships with suppliers and our local community – plus it’s what our customers expect and deserve from us.

What we make, makes us

We source our grain locally, which reduces our emissions. The majority is from the Holkham Estate in North Norfolk. Fiercely committed to sustainability, they are on the road to becoming carbon negative. We are also committed to using English hops in all our beers. They have amazing flavours and aromas, a lower carbon footprint, and require less irrigation.

 

We have won the Edie Sustainability Leaders Award for Water Management twice. We integrated our distillery into our brewing process using a closed-loop water cooling system that recovers steam and reuses it, also saving our gas usage and reducing the water we use.

 

All our sites have been powered by renewable electricity since 2017. We work hard to reduce our carbon emissions and were the first UK brewery to complete a full carbon life-cycle assessment of our beer range. We work with our suppliers too: because we're all in this together. 

A haven at reydon

Our distribution centre at Reydon has a sedum living roof which filters out pollutants and enhances the natural habitat, improving biodiversity. The walls are made of lime hemp blocks, which lock in carbon and provide great insulation, helping us maintain a consistent temperature, reducing the need for heating and cooling.

 

Since 2014, it has been home to the ‘Adnams Bees,’ looked after by our beekeeper Steve. They are part of an 18-mile bee corridor along the Suffolk coastline, and their honey is used by the chefs at The Crown.

 

We hold three beach cleans a year along a mile stretch of Southwold Beach, in partnership with the Marine Conservation Society. The data we collect contributes to their nationwide litter survey.

A modern retail space with a counter and shelves filled with products.

Waste not, want not

We are always on the lookout for ways to minimise our impact on the environment. Just a few examples can be found below:

 

·       Spent grain is sent to feed cattle. Anything that cannot be used is converted into biofuel.

·       Our stores offer gin refills, helping us to reduce our packaging waste.

·      We worked with our supplier O-I, to lightweight our glass bottles. It is now the industry standard.

·      Volunteers from across the business form the Adnams Employee Green Team. They initiate and support environmental projects to improve to our daily operations.

Leaving Footprints in the sand

Not on the planet

Sustainability is at the heart of what we do. Have a quick chat with any of us, and it will soon become apparent. From selecting the suppliers that we work with or the ingredients we use, through to the services we offer in our stores, pubs, and hotels, it guides our decisions, and helps us do the right thing. We want to continue making a positive difference, and we believe it is vital to our long-term success.

THE QUEEN’S AWARD FOR ENTERPRISE:
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THREE TIMES

 

We’ve received The Queen’s Award for Enterprise: Sustainable Development, three times – most recently in 2020. It’s awarded to businesses whose products and services benefit the environment, society and the economy, and it marks us out as one of the leading businesses for sustainable practice in the UK. We’ll keep working hard at doing what we do without it costing the earth.

SOCIAL

RESPONSIBILITY

We want to do the right thing, the right way, across all we do; even when no one is looking. We have to put our principles into practice and look beyond ourselves. This is especially true in our commitment to equality, diversity, and social justice.

 

We’re lucky that we have a beautiful beach on our doorstep, so getting out for a walk at lunchtime is rarely a chore. We’ve developed a range of low-alcohol beers and wines which can be enjoyed as part of a healthy lifestyle - remember, you can have too much of a good thing!

 

Adnams is a founding member of ‘Open to Everyone, Closed to Racism.’ We share our hometown with its founder, Jessica Gregson, so we were proud to get involved with this scheme. It aims to assist businesses in visibly promoting inclusivity front-of-house, while supporting them with expertise and education behind the scenes.

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